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​ALGUACIL

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Genero: Documental

Duración: 26 minutos

Formato de rodaje: Full HD

Formato de proyección: DCP 2K 

Subtítulos: Inglés - Francés

Dirección, guion y fotografía: Samuel Moreno Alvarez

Producción general: Luis Pedro Jamioy

Sonido: Juan  Carlos Jamioy

Asistente de dirección: William Jamioy

Post de audio: Clap studio

Post de imagen: 235 digital

Montaje: Juan Alvarez, David Aguilera, Samuel Moreno

Producido con el apoyo del Fondo para el Desarrollo Cinematográfico FDC Proimágenes

País: Colombia

Año: 2019

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Sinopsis: Fernando es un indígena kamëntsa que nació en el valle del Sibundoy (Putumayo, Colombia), pesé a tener 48 años aún vive en la casa de su abuela. Sale de fiesta cada vez que quiere, es popular, tiene amigos y gana dinero como locutor en la emisora local. Lo cual hace que el resto de su familia cuestione su comportamiento, ya que aparentemente nunca se interesó por salir adelante. Ahora Fernando ha sido elegido como alguacil mayor de la comunidad kamëntsa, como autoridad mayor. Esto lo convierte en el brazo de la ley en un pueblo de 4000 habitantes.

 

La historia se desarrolla con el nuevo oficio de Fernando en donde lo veremos recorrer el pueblo entregando citaciones a los demandados. Buscando malhechores. Escuchando los juicios y en caso de ser necesario, aplicar el castigo correspondiente con el látigo del perdón. Son esos pequeños momentos de la cotidianidad de Fernando en su oficio y en su vida personal, donde podemos retratar a este singular personaje y a lo complejo que puede llegar a ser para un hombre común y corriente tener la autoridad de toda una comunidad en sus manos.

 

A través de este documental mostraremos de una manera esperanzadora y sin herir susceptibilidades, la vida de un kamëntsa común, no el taita sabio o el médico ancestral que siempre se muestra como libre de pecados, sino un kamëntsa con altibajos, con defectos que tiene la posibilidad de ser autoridad. Ahora sus familiares y el resto de la comunidad tendrán que verlo y respetarlo como alguacil, pero él mismo también deberá vencer sus propios dilemas y elegir entre si realmente le gusta lo que hace o quiere volver a su antigua vida.

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ENGLISH VERSION

 

Sinopsis: Fernando is a kamëntsa native indigenous person who was born in the Sibundoy Valley (Putumayu, south of Colombia). Despite being 43, he still lives with his grandmother. He goes partying whenever he wants, he is popular, has got lots of friends and earns his living as an announcer in the local radio station. His family does not approve his behaviour because he has apparently never made any efforts to get ahead. Now Fernando has been chosen as major sheriff of the kamëntsa community, a major authority. This makes him the arm of the law in a town of 4000 people.

 

The plot develops around Fernando’s new duties. We will see him going around the town delivering summons to defendants, looking for law breakers, hearing judgements and, if necessary, applying punishment through the whip of forgiveness. It is in these little moments of his everyday life where we can picture this unique character and how complex it may be for a regular man to hold authority over a whole community.

 

Through this documentary we will show, in a hopeful way and without hurting anyone’s feelings, the life of a common kamäentsa, not the wise taita or traditional medicine man who is always portrayed as free of sins, but a kamëntsa with highs and lows who has got the opportunity to be an authority.  Now his family and the rest of the community will have to view and respect him as sheriff, but he himself will also have to conquer his own dilemmas and choose whether he really likes what he is doing or wants to go back to his old life.

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HISTORICAL CONTEXT

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‘Men born here, with their own thought and word’, this is the meaning of the word kamëntsa, with which are known the native indigenous people inhabiting the south of Colombia, in the Tabanok or Sibundoy Valley, in High Putumayo, for more than 4000 years. Their community still holds strongly to their traditional ways, they preserve most of their native language, worldview and wisdom regarding nature and traditional medicine. They were strongly evangelized since the 17th century by the capuchin missions. 

 

They have an autonomous form of government - called cabildo- which was imposed to them during the colony and is still in use. The Cabildo is acknowledged as a socio-political figure by the Nation, according to law 21 from March 4 1991. Their justice system grants a person accused of blameable behaviour the right to be judged by their own authorities, according to their regulations and procedures, within their territory, so as to guarantee respect for the individual’s particular worldview.

 

 

In December every year, the community gathers at the Cabildo Mayor and holdsan election to choose the cabildo members for the following year. Thus, the governor, mayor and sheriff are chosen. They assume their positions through the symbolic bestowal of staves of command on December 31st at the doors of their homes, with the waning moon and night as witness.  The ceremony must take place under the darkness of dawn, with little moonlight, so that evil spirits are prevented from seeing those invested with command and the responsibility of carrying the punishment whip during the following period.

 

CURRENT SITUATION

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The kamëntsa are a people full of secrets, a little reticent to be interviewed about certain topics in front of the cameras. They say that this is due mainly to the audio-visual raid they have been constantly victims of. They have been filmed many times, but few of them are satisfied with these recordings and the way they have been portrayed to the world.  This community, known for their knowledge of traditional medicine and Yagé, wish to be in command of their stories to tell them from within, in a more intimate and humane way.

 

APPROACH

 

This is the reason why a group of young Kamëntsas went to the cities to train and then go back to play an active role in the construction of their own memory. This personal desire managed to find a collective space through an initiative by the Ministry of Education called the I.N.I workshop “Imaginando Nuestra Imagen” (Imagining Our Image), held in 2012 in Sibundoy. There, the Carchansa Indigenous Culture and Communication Group was formed and went on to win the ANTV contest for the production of ethnic documentaries in 2013 and 2016.

 

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